


Layover

by celestialskiff



Series: Found Family [7]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Daddy Phil, Daddy Steve, Diapers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Littles, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other, Platonic Cuddling, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Thumb-sucking, alexander pierce should have died slower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-09
Updated: 2015-08-09
Packaged: 2018-04-13 20:13:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4535751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celestialskiff/pseuds/celestialskiff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil and Skye stop off at the Avengers Tower, and Skye ends up making a new friend. </p><p>This work is set in the <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/series/114886">Alexander Pierce Should Have Died Slower</a> series, which belongs entirely to Lauralot. I'm just playing in her sandbox.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Layover

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Lauralot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lauralot/gifts).



> Lauralot was talking about her Bucky meeting Skye from Found Family, and I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I ended up writing this! 
> 
> Skye has already met various Avengers in my fic "Ascending", but these are the characters from Lauralot's universe, not mine, so they don't know each other yet. The characterisations of Bucky and Bucky Bear belong entirely to Lauralot. 
> 
> Sorry to everyone I promised Pepper and little Natasha fic to! That will show up soon, I hope.

SKYE

Everyone was yelling. It was very fast and loud, and Skye felt her chest grow hot and tight, like a drum full of bees, more and more bees. It didn't matter that Iron Man was there, or that Captain America was the one shouting at Coulson: she just felt small and scared. It reminded her of long ago, in a foster home, trying to sleep with two people shouting outside her bedroom door. Knowing she was a bad girl, and not really knowing why. She felt like they were yelling at her, even though they were mostly yelling at Coulson. 

“Listen to me –” Iron Man was getting really close to Daddy's face and Skye felt her arms ache, and burn. She didn't want to accidentally use her powers. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to knock over an Avenger. It might make things more difficult for Coulson in the long run. 

So she slipped out of the room, into the corridor. 

Skye could still her shouting, but it was quieter out here. 

I want my blanket, she thought. Her blanket was in the diaper bag, and Coulson had been holding that. The phrase _diaper bag_ made her feel littler than ever. She was wet, because she'd wet her diaper on the plane before they'd been called to divert here, and she was wet because she was a stupid baby, and she couldn't – 

She rubbed the heels of her hands against her eyes, and took deep breaths, like May had shown her, and sunk down onto the floor, breathing carefully until she felt a little bit less like crying or making a wall explode. It's OK, she told herself. No one is going to hurt Daddy. You're not a bad girl. 

But it was very hard to believe. She flexed her fingers, trying to stop the shaking. 

The corridor was long and wide, and mostly empty, but her eyes caught a flicker of movement at one end. Some dark hair, and a dark eye, regarding her. When the person saw she was looking, they ducked into doorway so Skye stared back down at her hands. She didn't want to frighten them. 

She really wanted to suck her thumb, but she guessed she couldn't, especially if someone was looking. She settled for rubbing the tip of it over her lips. The rhythm soothed her a little. When she looked up, he was standing at the end of the corridor, watching her like she might be a threat. 

Skye looked back at him, trying to decide if she was. He had a metal arm, so her brain instantly supplied his name. _Bucky Barnes_. But she didn't really know anything about Bucky, except that he was a war hero and bad things had happened to him. She hoped he wasn't a threat. She felt small and scared, and if he wanted to attack her she might just end up screaming for Daddy. 

“Am in trouble?” he said, looking towards the door. There was still shouting, but a little fainter now. His voice was very small and anxious. He was holding a teddy-bear, tight to his chest, like Skye would've held her elephant if the elephant had been there. 

“Uh-uh,” Skye said. And then, because he was holding a bear and because he didn't look like a threat at all, she added, “I think I might be.” 

“Oh.” He looked down at his bear, shifting a little from foot to foot. “What did you do?” 

Skye nibbled her thumb. “I dunno,” she said. She wriggled: her diaper was getting cold, and she wasn't sure what would happen next. What if they took Coulson away? She'd have to break him out. 

Bucky was watching her carefully, bear tucked under his chin. He looked so _little_. Skye wondered if that could be possible, but he looked like she felt, and she couldn't come up with another explanation for why that would be. She hoped he was little: she hardly ever met other people like her. Besides, if he was little, he'd understand. 

“I dunno why I'm in trouble. But they're yelling at my Daddy,” she explained. 

“Oh.” Bucky took a step or two closer. He ducked his chin behind his bear and said, “They're mad at my Daddy. My old Daddy. But they're not mad at me.” 

“I think probably they _are_ mad at me too,” Skye said, because they'd looked at her like she was the enemy, all the people who were Avengers and who she admired, and maybe she _was_ the enemy, and she didn't want to be. 

“You could hold my bear,” Bucky said softly. He'd taken another step closer, he was right in front of her now, and that was sweet, because she thought he was still scared. She looked at his knees. Maybe she should stand up. 

“Are you sure you don't need him?” Skye asked. 

“It's OK.” Bucky held out the bear. He was a little raggedy, with a red nose and a jacket. Skye took him, and pulled him close. The plush felt nice, the bear a comforting warmth in her arms. He smelt like honey and peach shampoo. 

“What's your name?” Bucky asked. He was watching her carefully as she hugged the bear. 

She told him, and asked, “What's yours?” because it seemed wrong to just to assume. 

“Bucky,” he said softly, and then added, “Are you Skye like the sky? That's nice.” 

“Thank you.” Skye rubbed the bear's paw. “I saw your name once. On the wall for remembrance, for people who died in the line of duty, in SHIELD headquarters.”

She'd said the wrong thing, because Bucky's face went tight and sad, and he made a little jerky movement, like maybe he wanted to grab the bear from her. 

She held the bear out to him so he wouldn't have to. He took him back, tugging him close. “Steve says SHIELD are Hydra.” 

Skye wrinkled her nose. That wasn't true. “Not all of us,” she said, but lots of people thought SHIELD _were_ Hydra and she didn't know how to explain. 

They were quiet for a moment. Skye realised the shouting in the room next door had stopped too, but it wasn't a good kind of quiet. It was a heavy, tense kind of silence, and it made Skye's chest hurt. Bees under her fingers. And she had to pee again, sudden and heavy and urgent. 

“I have other bears,” Bucky said after a moment. “Do you want to see?”

Skye didn't want to go too far away from Daddy, but she was also very scared of going back into the room full of angry people. She was such a bad SHIELD agent. Such a bad girl. “OK,” she said. 

She followed Bucky down the corridor, into a cosy room with a TV, a table covered with colouring books and pencils, and a whole set of bears crowded on the couch. “Wow,” Skye said, looking at them. They had costumes, like the bears from Build-a-Bear, only better. Her stomach was all tight. She shifted her weight carefully. 

“You can hold any of them,” Bucky said, still holding his own bear tight to his chest. 

Skye knelt by the couch so she could look at them properly. She felt her diaper squish cold against her butt as she did so. She wriggled. She really had to go again; she knew she wouldn't be able to hold on for long. She wondered if Daddy would be able to find her back here. 

She picked up a bear carefully – it was a Thor bear, she realised, with a cape and hammer. 

“Wow,” she said. He was cute and fuzzy, but he looked like he'd do a good job of protecting people, too. And Mommy really like Thor. 

Bucky was watching her, but he wasn't coming too close. The bear in his arms glared. 

Skye held Thor Bear to her chest. “Your bear is afraid of SHIELD, isn't he?”

Bucky was quiet, and then he nodded. 

“I'm not just a SHIELD agent,” Skye said. This might be an easier conversation to have when she was bigger. But then maybe not. Anyway, she wasn't big now, and she didn't know how to change that. She touched her thumb to her lips, and then let herself have one comforting suck. It turned it five or ten sucks, before she said, “I'm Skye, too. And I'm little, like you.” 

“I'm bigger than you,” Bucky said. He sounded slightly miffed. “I'm five foot nine.” 

“I just mean –” Skye squirmed, nibbling her thumb. She really wanted her blanket, and she wasn't going to be able to hold onto her bladder much longer. What was the point, anyway? She was already wet. She chewed her lip, finally saying, “We both like bears.” 

Bucky nodded. He looked down at his bear, and gave a ghost of a smile. “Do you want to play a game?”

“Uh-huh.” Skye cuddled Thor Bear. “I'd like that.” 

Bucky wanted to play a game with a car-chase and a fight scene between the bears, which was a little scarier than Skye was used to, but she didn't want to make a fuss. She wet somewhere in the middle of the car-chase, which was a relief because her tummy didn't hurt any more, but the diaper felt very heavy. She hoped Bucky hadn't noticed. 

“Maybe they can go to the magic forest now?” Skye asked, after Thor Bear and Bear Widow escaped Bucky Bear's sniper rifle. 

“Magic forest?” Bucky tugged at his hair. Skye glanced at Bucky Bear: she was pretty sure Bucky Bear didn't know what a magic forest was, and he didn't think anything he didn't know about could be safe.

“It's just a forest, with um... There can be magic animals in it, like unicorns and dragons? But friendly. And it's safe, no one can get you there. Me and Ada, my elephant, we go there when we play.” 

Bucky Bear was suspicious of forests and elephants. Skye could tell. But Bucky said, carefully, “I guess we could try it.” 

Skye explained about the tree-house, high up in the canopy, where no one could find you. “You can't fall, don't worry,” she told Bucky Bear. She'd been playing in the tree-house for as long as she could remember and she'd never been hurt. 

Bucky said he kind of liked the idea of being up in the canopy with her. Captain Ameribear and Bear Widow were following Bucky Bear up the ladder when the door opened. 

Skye had her back to the door. She felt herself go stiff. She wanted to hug a bear to her chest, but instead she stood up carefully, muscles tense. It was Daddy, and behind him, Captain America. 

“Da --” Skye began, then cut herself off. “Sir, I was just...” 

“It's OK, baby,” Daddy said gently. He looked very tired, Skye thought. But he'd called her baby, which meant it was safe: that was always the code between them. Safe to let her guard down, and safe to be little. 

She stepped towards Daddy, not looking at Captain America. He'd been shouting, and she didn't like that. She really wanted a hug, and Daddy seemed to know, because he held out her arms to her, and she crumpled against his chest. He smelt sweaty, his shirt was creased; she knew he'd had a hard day: it had been a hard day before they'd had to reroute to the Avengers Tower. But everything about him was reassuring, even the circles under his eyes. She nuzzled into his shoulder, and felt him stroking circles on her back. 

“Everyone was mad,” she said. “I was scared. Are you OK?” 

“I'm OK,” he said into her hair. “I'm sorry you were scared.” 

Skye nodded. Then she remembered Bucky, and it seemed rude not to introduce him. “I made a friend,” she said, peeking up a little. “We played bears.” 

Bucky was standing close to Captain America, and he was holding Iron Bear and Captain Ameribear against his chest, as well as Bucky Bear. It was quite a lot of bears to hold at once. He looked shy, and Captain America was staring at her, his mouth slightly open. 

“I'm glad you made a friend,” Daddy said. He was looking at Bucky now too, and at the bears. “We have to stay here a little longer.” 

“Are they still mad?” Skye didn't really want Daddy to go back if there was going to be more shouting. It made her stomach hurt even here. 

Captain America coughed. “We'll be civil,” he said. Then he added, “It's OK.” He was still watching her, but Skye decided he looked curious, not upset or angry. That should have made her feel better, but she was still shy. She slid her thumb into her mouth, ducking her head against Daddy's shoulder. She felt like such a stupid baby: a real agent would be excited to meet the Captain. 

Coulson just kept holding her, like he knew how bad she felt, and then he reached down and gently squeezed her diaper. Daddy kissed her forehead, and then said very softly, “Is there somewhere I can change her, Captain Rogers?” 

Skye felt herself blush, because Bucky would probably hear, and know she was wearing diapers, and maybe he wouldn't want to be her friend now he knew she was such a baby. 

But then she heard Bucky say, “You can use my room. Or the bathroom. There's a bathroom, next to my room.” His voice was small and shy, and Skye felt very grateful to him. Her diaper was heavy between her legs. 

“Thank you,” she heard Daddy say, in his serious voice, and then he took her hand. “We can go over the data once she's comfortable,” he added. 

“It's OK.” Captain America sounded gentler now. He even sounded nice when he wasn't shouty. “Take your time.” 

He came with them to the door, to show them where the room was. As she and Daddy walked away, she heard Bucky say, “She liked my bears, Daddy,” and Captain America's low rumble in response. 

“They're like us,” Skye said, once they'd close the bedroom door behind them. “Can you believe it?” She was still clinging to Daddy, nuzzling at him like a cat. He sat on the edge of the bed, and she crawled into his lap. 

“Are you OK, little limpet?” Daddy said. 

“And Bucky liked to play bears, and he was nice to me.” She felt Daddy rock her a little. “I'm OK,” she added. “I just. I didn't mean to be wet, but I am, and it's scary, and I'm little, and I'm useless, and...”

“Shhhh,” Daddy was smoothing back her hair. She didn't usually say things like that to him. May was the one who soothed her when she was insecure. But Coulson was hugging her, and saying, “You're not useless, baby. It's OK to be little. They understand, here. I know people were angry, but you're safe. It's OK, it's always OK to be you.” 

Skye sighed. She didn't really believe him, and the words made her feel shy and embarrassed, but at the same time, she was glad he said them. 

“Here,” Daddy reached into the bag, and drew out her elephant, Ada Lovelace, and her blanket, too. Skye grabbed them, hugging them to her chest, and leant back into Daddy's arms. She sucked her thumb, rubbing her blanket over her nose. She felt herself make a little involuntary happy noise. It smelt safe, like home and like Mommy, and she sighed, relaxing a little. 

She wasn't sure how long Daddy held her like that. It might have been a long time, but it didn't feel long enough. 

“Let's get you changed, sweetheart. I'll be in trouble with May if I let you get a rash.” 

Skye lay back on the bed. She looked around the room while Daddy got the diaper out of the bag. It was a simple room, but the bed was really comfy, and there were lots of books on the shelves. Fairy-tales, and picture books. Skye wanted to look at them, but she stayed still, lifting her hips when Daddy asked her. 

She rubbed her eyes. “I could change myself, if you're in a hurry,” she said, feeling bad. Daddy was an important person, and the Avengers were important too, and she realised she was delaying them. 

“I'm always happy to help you,” he said, tugging the tapes into place. “Besides, I know it'll stay in place if I do it. No leaks.” 

Skye had done it herself before she'd had Coulson and May to help her, managing her own pull-ups and diapers at night. She was pretty good at it, but it was definitely better when someone else helped. She sat up, pulling her sweat-pants back on. 

“Are you OK with Bucky?” Daddy asked. He was putting the used diaper into a waste bag, but he looked like he wasn't totally sure where he should put it after that. “You looked like you were having fun.” 

“We were.” Skye liked Bucky, but she kind of wanted to go home to Mommy. She didn't say it though. “Maybe we'll watch a movie.” 

“That sounds nice.” Daddy double-bagged the diaper and stuck it back into the diaper bag. “Let's wash our hands, and then you can go back and play, OK?” 

When they got back, Captain America and Bucky were reading a story together, sitting on bean bags. Bucky Bear was on Bucky's lap, listening. Skye wondered if he'd like to meet Ada. She leant against Daddy's side, her thumb going back into her mouth. 

Captain America paused. “Go on,” Bucky said at once, his eyes on the pictures. 

“Do you want to sit down, Skye?” Captain America asked. 

Skye glanced at Daddy, and then nodded, sitting down on his left, so she could see the pictures too. “I'm Steve,” Captain America said. He was using a gentle voice now. “It's nice to meet you.” 

Skye didn't know what to say, because she wasn't sure if she was glad to meet Steve yet. In the book, there was a picture of a two children, going through a forest. Little squirrels and rabbits watched them from the shadows of trees. “That's pretty,” she said, around her thumb. Her voice came out slurred because of the thumb, but Bucky nodded, understanding her. 

“Hansel and Gretel,” he said. 

Skye leant her cheek against Ada, listening as Steve read the familiar story. When he was done, she felt a little calmer. She slid her thumb out of her mouth and showed her elephant to Bucky Bear. “This is Ada Lovelace.” 

Bucky Bear didn't trust elephants. 

“Hi,” Bucky said, and put his hand gently, briefly, on Ada's trunk. 

“You can hold her if you like,” Skye said. 

Bucky shook his head. He was already holding Bucky Bear and Captain Ameribear. “We could make another tree-house,” he suggested. 

Daddy petted Skye's hair, brushing back her bangs. They fell right back into her eyes. “We should continue our meeting. Right, Captain Rogers?” 

“You can come find us if you need anything, Buck,” Steve said. “You too, Skye. It's just boring grown-up stuff.” 

“Coulson's giving you the data he got from the Hydra base in Vancouver,” Skye said. “I nearly got shot.” It hadn't been boring. 

There was a pause, and then Daddy said, “I'll be back soon.” 

“Did you really get shot?” Bucky said when they left. His eyes were wide. Bucky Bear wasn't sure he believed Skye. 

“Only nearly, that time,” Skye said. “One time I was shot in the stomach, that was really bad.” She rubbed the silky edge of her blanket between her fingers. 

“But you're...” Bucky squeezed the bears. “You're like me. Were you different then?” 

“Uh-uh.” Skye wasn't sure how to explain. “I'm an agent too. I can handle myself in the field. I've been trained.”

“Oh.” Bucky looked away. The bear in his lap stared out at Skye. He knew he was the bravest bear ever, but bad things happened in the field. He wasn't allowed to touch weapons. He wasn't sure Skye should either. She was wearing diapers, after all, she must be a really little kid. 

“It's OK,” Skye tried to explain to the bear. “Sometimes it's scary. But I want to be a good agent, and it's what my family does. You can be a little and still contribute.” 

“I don't,” Bucky said. He still wasn't looking at her. “Not any more. I'm not supposed to be an asset now.” 

Skye rubbed her blanket over her nose. She often felt like she was more trouble than she was worth. They'd always said that, back at the orphanage. And she thought it was probably true: she was so much work, she needed so much. But Mommy and Daddy always said that wasn't true. They loved her just the way she was. 

“Sometimes you contribute without knowing it,” she said. “Sometimes you feel like you're useless, but other people are really, really glad to have you around.” 

Bucky squirmed a little. “I'm not allowed to touch knives.” 

Skye shrugged. “Bears are more fun than knives.” She didn't want to talk about this any more, it made her stomach feel tight. “Maybe we can use these pillows to make a better tree-house. Along the top of the couch – right there.” 

Bucky looked where she was pointing. He was quiet, and then he said, “OK.” 

BUCKY

Skye was really good at playing bears. Tasha was good at bears too, and sometimes, if Tony was in the right mood, he was really, really good, but Skye was different: she had lots of ideas for new adventures. 

Bucky Bear wasn't sure about any of it. He was in charge of games, and Skye wanted him to wander through mirrors or float across lagoons, and she kept talking about unicorns, and Bucky Bear felt like that was kind of silly. 

But Bucky liked it. It was different from the games he played, and it felt safe. Very few scary things happened in Skye's games. 

We need to stay on alert, Bucky Bear was reminding him. Skye had admitted she was a SHIELD agent, and Skye's Daddy was definitely scary. Bucky agreed, but found himself laughing anyway when Skye did a special voice for Hulk Bear, and told a story about Hulk splashing into the lagoon and getting water everywhere, even on the mermaid's newly dried hair. 

“But the dragon dried him off with his hot, steamy breath,” Skye said. 

“Who's the dragon?” 

Skye sat back on her heels. “What about War Machine Bear? He looks scary enough.” 

Even Bucky Bear agreed that War Machine Bear was tough enough to play a dragon. Dragons made Bucky think of Toothless, who wasn't very scary, and apparently Skye did too, because she said, “Do you like _How to Train Your Dragon_?”

“I like the first one.” Bucky hadn't been allowed to watch the second one, but he didn't tell her that. 

Skye nodded. “The other one was scary, but I like the island where the dragons lived by themselves. It would be nice to have an island where no-one bothered you.”

Bucky wasn't sure. The Avengers Tower felt like an island sometimes, or a tree-house, somewhere separate from everything else. A defensive position. He didn't know what he'd do on a real island. “Could Daddy come?”

“Of course,” Skye said. “All the nice people can come.” 

She leant forward to grab Bear Widow from the couch. Bear Widow was looking at Ada the elephant distrustfully. When Skye leant forward, Bucky could see the top of her diaper sticking out of the back of her pants. That made him feel weird. Skye must be _really_ little, practically a baby, and yet she didn't seem very embarrassed about it. She'd even let someone else change her. 

“You need more girl bears,” Skye said. 

“I'm going to get a Maria bear and a Pepper bear,” Bucky explained. “One day.” 

Skye made Bear Widow talk about how much she'd like that, and then Bear Widow and Bucky Bear had to ride the dragon. Bucky wasn't totally sure why, but he was OK with helping Bucky Bear climb onto Dragon War Machine. “Faster!” Skye was saying in a dragon voice, and it made Bucky laugh a little. 

Then the door opened, and it was Daddy and Coulson again. Skye put the bears down carefully. Bucky saw her left hand reach for her tattered blanket. 

“I'm having some trouble with the decoding,” Coulson said. “And so is Stark.” 

“You want me to help?” Skye said. 

“Can you manage it, baby?” Coulson spoke to her gently: his face looked different when he talked to her. Bucky hoped he was a good Daddy. He felt nervous around Coulson, because Steve said he wasn't trustworthy, and even though he didn't say mean things, there always seemed to be something mocking in his voice. Maybe if Coulson was a bad Daddy, Steve would have to adopt Skye, and Steve wouldn't want two kids, because he hadn't wanted any kids in the first place, and Bucky was a lot of work, and – 

“Can I bring Ada?” Skye said, interrupting Bucky's train of thought. “She's good at programming.” 

Coulson smiled at her. “I know.” 

Bucky watched her pick up the elephant and the blanket. Bucky Bear didn't want to be left behind: he thought they should follow Skye, and observe her. And Bucky Bear was kind of mad that they'd had to stop playing, because he'd been having fun with the dragon. 

“Can I come too, Daddy?” Bucky asked. He wasn't always allowed into the boardroom. Sometimes scary stuff happened in there. 

But Steve said, “Sure,” looking slightly surprised. 

“Bucky Bear needs to observe,” Bucky explained. 

Steve smiled. “Is he checking that we're doing our jobs properly?” 

Skye looked very small and shy when they went into to the boardroom. Tony and Natasha and Pepper were all there, and Bruce too. Bucky knew they weren't scary people. Skye's Daddy was way scarier than any of them, so Bucky wondered why Skye looked so intimidated. She held the elephant and the blanket up against her chest, pressing against Coulson. Bucky stayed standing so he could leave quickly if he needed to. 

“Just show us what you did on the way back from the base,” Coulson said. 

Tony coughed. “If I can't open this, your agent can't either. It must have re-encrypted when you closed it.” 

Skye settled Ada on her knee. She glanced at Tony, and said, “Wanna bet?” but her voice was very small despite the challenging words. 

Tony was watching her give Coulson the blanket. “Uh. I don't take money from kids,” Tony said. 

Skye shrugged. Her hands moved rapidly over the keys, and she was biting her lips. She still looked intimidated, and Bucky wondered if he should help her, but he didn't know anything about computers. 

She nibbled her thumb. “It's the same code. Hydra always reuses the same patterns; they're lazy.” 

Tony came around and stood behind her. “Are you sure?” 

She nodded, and explained something to him that Bucky didn't understand. Bucky Bear wanted to talk to Tasha about their game, and whether Red Panda would want to play too, but Tasha was being big, and Bucky guessed she wouldn't want to play right now. He sat in the chair by Pepper. He felt small in the boardroom, somehow: the furniture was all so big and shiny, and he didn't belong. 

“You OK, sweetie?” Pepper asked. “We're just getting some intel from Phil; it's not a big deal.” 

“I was playing with Skye,” Bucky explained. “And Bucky Bear thought we should observe her.” 

“Oh yes?” Pepper looked thoughtful. “How come?” 

“Well.” Bucky chewed his lip, looking at his bear. “I guess because she's a SHIELD agent and Steve said we're not sure if we can trust them. But she's nice.” 

Skye was chewing a strand of hair while she concentrated. Coulson, standing beside her, was holding her blanket carefully, the way Steve sometimes held Bucky Bear for him. Like that, neither of them looked very threatening, and Bucky guessed Pepper felt the same, because she smiled a little. “I'm glad you're having fun with Skye. I didn't know Phil had a kid like you; maybe you guys should hang out sometimes.”

“Is that a good idea?” Bruce said, across the table. 

“Well, I...” Pepper began, but Tony interrupted. 

“You shouldn't be able to do that. How did you do that? Why do you work for SHIELD and not for me?” Tony was talking loudly, and Skye backed away from the laptop a little. She reached out to Coulson, and he handed her back her blanket. She pressed it against her cheek. 

_Sir, if I may_ , JARVIS's voice interrupted. 

“Uh-huh?” 

_I consider Agent Skye a Level 4 security risk, and I have been monitoring her online activities for the last five years._

“A Level 4?” Tony looked kind of impressed. “And you're like Bucky?” 

Skye looked over at Bucky for the first time since she'd come into the room. She squirmed a little, like she was uncomfortable with all of this. Bucky wondered if she was happy to let other people see what a baby she was, but he knew it wasn't always possible to stop it. Bucky Bear was worried about JARVIS thinking she was a risk, but he was kind of interested too. “Ada Lovelace helped,” Skye said at last. “Anyway, I'm not like Bucky, I'm like me. And I'm good with computers.”

“OK, but I need you to show me again what you did with that encryption code, because...” Tony began. 

Skye interrupted, “Do you wanna play some more?” She looked at Bucky. 

“Why don't I get you kids some juice?” Pepper stood up. “You can finish this off without me, I'm sure.” 

Bucky put his hand out to hold Pepper's. He was glad she was coming with them. He was feeling kind of tired suddenly: he hadn't slept much, and he wasn't used to meeting new people. 

Pepper smiled at Skye. “Is this OK?” she asked. “We can have cookies, too.”

Tony looked like he wanted to say something, but Bruce asked him about the security risks and JARVIS's monitoring and Tony cut himself off so he could explain. 

Skye's thumb traced her lips, though she didn't actually put it in her mouth. She nodded, and followed Pepper, hugging her elephant to her chest. Bucky wondered what it was like to be little and smart, too. He didn't think he ever did anything that would impress Tony. 

Pepper gave Bucky one of the smoothies with extra fruit and yoghurt that was supposed to give him lots of nutrients and still be easy to eat. She offered one to Skye too, but Skye asked for grape juice instead. She held her glass awkwardly like she was afraid she'd drop it, while Bucky sucked on his smoothie through a straw. Skye got oatmeal cookie crumbs on Ada's head, which Bucky Bear thought was terrible. Bucky was always careful not to get Bucky Bear messy. 

“Your house is very big,” Skye said to Pepper. “We live on a base, and it's big too, but it's not so cosy.” 

Pepper smiled. “I'm glad you think it's cosy. Have you been having a nice time with Bucky?”

“Uh-huh.” Skye chewed her lip. “We weren't expecting to stop off here though. I wasn't...” She glanced at Bucky. “I'm glad you were here. I was feeling kind of scared.” 

“You were?” Bucky had felt the same way about Skye. He hadn't known why she was here, and he hadn't known she was a kid at first, and he'd been so worried she might be threat. And he wasn't sure he knew how to deal with threats any more. He guessed he was supposed to call for Daddy or another grown-up. 

“Yeah. Everyone was mad, and I didn't feel big.”

“I don't...” Bucky squeezed his bear. Bucky Bear didn't want him to say anything, but in the end, Bucky overruled him and said, “It's hard to feel big.” 

“Uh-huh. Daddy says I'm a good agent and….” She picked up a cookie and put it down again. “But I'm so much trouble and they have to look after me.” 

Bucky's throat was tight. That was how he felt too. He was so much work, and he wished he could be different. “You helped though. On the computer. I never do that. I'm not good at anything.” 

Pepper had been quiet, listening, but now she put his hand on his shoulder. “That's not true, Bucky.” 

“It is!” Bucky wanted to shrug her off, because she was lying to him, but that would be mean. He knew she was trying to help. Everyone was always trying to help, and Bucky never helped anyone. His throat hurt. 

“I help sometimes,” Skye said. “I guess. But I never feel like I'm any good at anything. Sometimes I pretend I am, but I'm not.” She paused, stroking her blanket over her nose. “But Bucky, other people see good things about us that we don't see. And maybe what they see is true, too.” 

Pepper was nodding at Skye. “Yes. I think you both need to believe the people who love you.” 

Skye squirmed. “I don't like conversations like this. They make my tummy feel weird.” 

That almost made Bucky laugh. “Mine, too.” 

“Do you like movies? We could watch something. Do you like _Mulan_?” Skye asked. 

_Mulan_ was kind of scary. Bucky glanced at Pepper. He thought Pepper would probably know what they should watch, and she said, “How about _Beauty and the Beast_? Do you like that one, Skye?”

“Yeah. It's pretty good for a movie without any dragons in it,” Skye agreed. 

In the living room, Skye and Bucky carefully arranged the Bearvengers on one of the beanbags so they could all see the TV. Ada and Bucky Bear sat on the couch between them, watching the screen. Bucky Bear still wasn't sure about Ada, or Skye, either. He didn't know any little girls other than Tasha, and he trusted Tasha, but Skye wasn't anything like Tasha, and did that mean he couldn't trust Skye? It was confusing. Plus, Ada smelt like baby powder and Bucky Bear wasn't sure an elephant who said she was a mathematician should smell like baby powder. 

Bucky tried to focus on the movie instead. 

He noticed Skye drifting to sleep beside him. Her eyes were glazed, only half-focused on the screen, and she had her thumb in her mouth, her blanket clutched in her arms. She looked very babyish, and for a second it made Bucky feel kind of good not to be the littlest person around. 

Bucky felt sleepy too, but he was afraid to nap in case he had an accident. He wasn't wearing a pull-up. He didn't like to wear them during the day, but sometimes he wished he did, because it would be nice to slip off like Skye, without worrying. The movie was comforting and familiar, and he could feel his mind drifting, soothed by the familiar scenes. At one point, he found his head resting on his shoulder, and he'd missed a whole chunk of the movie, and he didn't know how. He sat up, resolving to stay focused. 

Then the end credits were rolling, and Bucky knew he'd been asleep. For a second he was afraid to move, because when he was wet, he never knew until he moved, until he flexed a muscles and suddenly felt the cold on his skin. But, slowly, he moved his thigh, and felt that he was dry. It was OK. He kind of had to go to the bathroom, but not too badly. Everything was fine. 

He blinked sleepily. He realised he could hear low voices around him. Daddy was sitting on the armchair, and Coulson was at the end of the couch. Skye had sagged against him, and Coulson's arms were around. He was idly stroking her hair. 

“….He wouldn't like to wear them,” Daddy was saying, just above a whisper. Bucky watched him through half-closed eye-lashes. 

“You can't force kids, of course,” Coulson said. “But if he's having a lot of leaks at night, diapers would definitely help. Skye always wets right through pull-ups.” He said that fondly, as if wasn't gross and weird. 

“Does she...” Daddy coughed slightly. “Does she have a lot of problems with bed-wetting?”

“Yes, she does, poor little kid. She's always had a lot of problems with staying dry, day and night. She's been to doctors, but it's definitely a psychological issue, not a physical one. It's often a side-effect of trauma.” He was still petting Skye's hair. “It's a pity it's such a taboo subject.” 

“I wish Bucky didn't get so embarrassed,” Daddy said. “It's not his fault. It's not a bad thing.” 

“We've been lucky, Skye and I, because she's always found the diapers very comforting.” Coulson sighed. “I'm sure Bucky will get more used to it, with time.”

Bucky wanted to yell that he definitely wouldn't get used to it! It was still gross, and he was icky, and Coulson didn't know anything. Skye might be OK with it, but she was a baby, and it would definitely never be OK for him. But he stayed quiet, because he wondered what else his Daddy would say about him. 

“I don't know. I sometimes feel bad for encouraging him with all of this, and other times I wish he'd embrace it more, be more comfortable.” 

Coulson nodded. “I think it helps, when you're both happy with it.” He was going to say something else, but Skye yawned a little in his arms, nuzzling at him. 

“Daddy,” she murmured. “I thought you were in a meeting. Is the movie done?”

“I'm afraid you missed it all. Steve and I got to see the end, though.” 

Skye's thumb was in her mouth again. “Did the good guys win?” 

“Pretty much. It wasn't really that kind of movie, though.” Coulson was smiling. 

It made Bucky feel weird. Coulson was looking at Skye like she was the most important thing in the world. Sometimes Steve looked at him like that, and before, Pierce had looked at him that way. And now it made him feel strange and hot and awful. He knew Skye was safe, and he knew he was safe, but somehow he couldn't feel that way. 

Suddenly, he wanted to take Skye away from Coulson, because she was only a baby, and maybe Coulson wasn't a good Daddy. 

But Steve was saying, “You guys should have dinner before you go. There's always space to spend the night, too, if you don't want to travel so late.” He was saying it calmly, and Bucky thought if Coulson was a bad Daddy, Steve would probably hit him a lot of times. Bucky's stomach hurt a little less. 

“I want to go home to Mommy,” Skye said, rubbing her eyes. 

“But you'll come back, right?” Bucky said, before he remembered he was supposed to be asleep. He hadn't realised he wanted to see Skye again so much. “And we can play with bears?” 

Skye squirmed away from Coulson so she could look at him properly. “Yes, please. I really want to have another adventure with Bucky Bear and Captain Ameribear, and all of them.” 

Bucky nodded. He was pleased she liked the Bearvengers. The Bearvengers were pretty great. 

“And you as well,” Skye added, putting a small, warm hand on his arm. Bucky wasn't sure what to do, but he gave her hand a tiny squeeze with his metal one, and that seemed to be the right thing, because Skye smiled.


End file.
